The Bozeman weekly chronicle., 1887-02-23
Farm Notes.

Rev. s. W. Powell has translated from
the French little book, which has al
ready done good service in Europe in
enlightening public opinion as to the
necessity of protecting forest for their
value in connection with agriculture.
Nearly thirty years ago the provinces Of
France. through which ran the feeders
of the river Rhine, had become in many
places unfit for human habitat;on, owing
to the ever.growing violence to the tor
rents which rushed down the mountains
from whose slopes the restraining wood
growth had been cut away. Here was
seen what has always followed the de-
struction of forests on steep and lofty
mountains. The skeletons of the hills
were stripped clean and the farm lands
in the bottoms were covered over with
gravel. In single province-70 900 acres
were turned into desert. Vast sums
were expended every year to repair roads,
railways and bridges, but the evil increas-
ed until an act was passed to rewood the
highlands and thus prevent what could
not be cured. The government needed
the hearty co operation of the people in
this enterprise, and this little primer
won the prize offered by the academy
of AK for short treatise for popular
instruction. The law which was passed
in 1850 and the method of planting
adopted have proved beneficent in their
effects, and it is claimed that the costruc-
tion impaired in M. Rousset's essay was
an important help IN carrying forward
the reforesting. The same conditions
prevail, with certain notifications, in
many parts of our own country, and Mr..
Powell's translation will do good service
in placing this discussion before Ameri-
can readers. Some of the agricultural
theories are rather antiqudted hut the
relation of the forest to the farm is
graphically stated. The book is written
in the form of dialogue between a
hard.headed peasant, who is slow to ad-
nit the necessity ofplanting more woods
to occupy what is now his sheep range
and a progressive teacher, who gives
him the facts and arguments in simple
way without any attempt to the techni-
cal and scientific. Here are some of the
bright schoolmaster's aphorisms:
where the earth is in danger from
the water, plant sapling.
"The forest on the mountain saves
the soil on the hillside and makes the
spring in the valley.
"The woods hold the water; water
makes grass; grass makes focks; focks
/ make manure; manure makes grain.
After many experiments in the breed
ing and selection of pigs, Mr.. Edward
Burnett concludes that for supplying the
best city trade he would choose strong,
hearty grade Yorkshire sows and cross
with the Berkshire boar, or the reverse,
when they are almost sure to breed
white. Pigs, like all domestic animals,
require plenty of good feed, given regu-
larlv, clean quarters and proper care.
Without either one of these require
ments, no matter how good stock Il
farmer may have to begin with, he will
| not be successful, and his stock will soon
deteriorate. Nothing should be bred
under one year old and experience has
taught him that a good well-shaped SOW,
that throws large litters and is a good
mother, can be kept to advantage eight
or nine years. The flow of milk increases
up to four years, and will hold as long as
she continues to be good breeder.
There is perhaps more skill required
in feeding swine than anv of our do
mestic animals, and he has frequently
found that one man would make pigs
thrive on q certain amount of feed on
which with another they would hardly
| hold their own. There is nothing like
skinned milk for young pigs, and vet it
can not be fed protitably for any length
of time at over half cent quart, As
a substitute he has fed to advantage
good bran and crushed oats scalded so as
to make thin mhlsh. After the third
month some meal can be added and
gradually increased until 1t takes the
place entirely of bran and constitutes
three quarters of the grain feed. With
spring pigs their feed can be supplement
ted by one feed day of green fodder,
freshly cut clover being the best of all,
Young pigs should be fed three to five
times day. Some of the farmers who
supply him with pork have been most
successful in turning weaned pigs out to
clover and feeding only small ration of
skinned milk or slops once day, con-
tinuing thus till six weeks before mar.
keting and then finishing off in close
pens kept clean, with cornmeal and
whole corn. A good illustration of the
great improvement made in the modern
pig and of the small amount of waste is
an experiment tried in England few
yesrs ago. A thorough bred Yorkshire
about twelve months old that dressed
over 900 pounds, was carefully disscted
and the bones cleaned, weighed only
twenry-one pounds.
/ 1t would be better if the bills affecting
agriculture were more carefully discussed
and their Durport analysed. The Hatch
bill is at present "the farmers bill"
One all at once sees much said in it's
favor by the press and people. How is
itthat they have not discovered this bill
before-that has been in existence SO
longP 1t wonld be better if farmers
would read over such wide-reachinp
bills and study into their intent, intel.
ligent criticism only perfects, if it does
not annihilate. The Hatch bill has a
noble purpose, but as presented to the
last congress it is weak. This bill, as il
stands at present, lays down no rule to
prevent grievous abuse Of the appropria-
ton. But we understand that Senator
Edmunds intends 10 offer an amendment
that will prevent misuse of moneys in
the hanls of the boards of control.
Water slightly warmed is better fol
live stock than that which is icy cold
yet we should not go to extremes in thi.
matter. Circumstances alter cases
Cattle do not drink so much in winter